News

I am changing my “Review Request Policy” so this will affect who and what I review, I decided to write a post instead of just editing my “Review Policy” because I wanted to explain my reasons for the change to my reviewing policy.

I wanted to put the minds of those authors – that are on my books (so to speak) for reviews – to rest, and assure them that I am not giving up reviewing. I have just got to the stage in my reviewing life and my personal one where I need to make this change so that I can still review at the same high quality in which I review at now. If I don’t change my review policy it would mean letting authors down and that is something that I really don’t want to do.

New Reviewing Policy (This will be added to my Review Policy Page)

From now on I will only accept review requests if you fall into one of the following categories:

• I have previously reviewed your work before and enjoyed it (eg: I rated it a four or five stars on Goodreads).

• I have featured you on Chicks, Rogues and Scandals (eg; Author Interviews or guest posts).

• I am on your Reviewers Street Team.

• I have shown an interest in your work on social media.

This does mean that from now on until further notice I won’t be accepting new to me authors – unless I have shown an interest in your work – I am very sorry if this comes as a disappointment to anyone, but as I am about to explain it is just not possible to take on new authors that are not in the above categories.

I am sorry!

I am still happy to host guest posts, Spotlight and cover reveals and I am always on the lookout for authors to feature in my “A Chat With…” Author Interview Page. So, if you still want to feature on Chicks Rogues and Scandals just send me a message whether that be email, comment, Direct Messaging via Facebook or Twitter or even carrier pigeon, I will always reply.

So why have I made this decision?

For the last few months my life, both sides of my life – the reviewing one and my personal one – has been a whirl wind, there has been so much going on. I have got things going on in my family/personal life that I would rather not divulge on my blog, but let’s just say there has been trials and changes that I now need to do my reviewing around and not just alongside as I have always done. I hope that makes sense?

The way that Chicks Rogues and Scandals has gone from strength to strength is just astounding and I am so very humbled by all the support that I have had, and the very kind messages that I get on a daily basis. It is very touching to get messages from my followers who tell me that I have inspired them to read more, or that I have introduced them to new authors. That, for me is the ultimate compliment and one that I am very proud of. That is one of the reasons that I started blogging, not just to share my thoughts and opinions on books and various others topic that I tend to babble on about, but to get none readers to pick up a book, to introduce new authors to fellow readers and I am rather proud that I have accomplished those set out goals.

In the last nearly two years since Chicks Rogues and Scandals was born – two years in October! Wow, that has flown by. I have been so privileged to connect with the most amazing people that anyone could meet, a lot of those wonderful authors who have taken a chance on this amateur reviewer have become firm friends – I’m pretty sure you know who you are *cough* Unlaced Ladies 😉 and those fellow reviewers that I have met along the way have also become the some of the most important people in my life – I hope you six ladies know who you are (Carol, Rose, Shell, Alison, Gwessie and Amy).

Yet, as well as Chicks Rogues and Scandals has been going there is a bit of a cost to that bit of success and that has to be the amount of review requests that I get. Don’t get me wrong I love getting the messages and emails on a daily basis from authors and publishers asking for a review from me, I get a warm feeling deep down. But it has got to the point now where I am turning down reviews, I hate writing those messages or emails saying to an author that I can’t review their work. I always feel callous and rude to reject those requests, which is why I have written this post.

I hope this post has explained everything but if you have any questions then don’t be afraid to leave me a message, Thank you again for all the support and kindness that everyone has shown me. Now that I have put this new Reviewing Policy in place I no longer have to rush and get stressed when I’m late with a review, back to my chilled out of overly laid back approach.

I have the great pleasure of being apart of Vivian Conroy’s latest Cosy Mystery Cover Reveal of Fatal Masquerade, which is book four in the Lady Alkmene Cosy Mystery series. So drum roll please….

Blurb

Lady Alkmene and Jake Dubois are back in a gripping new adventure facing dangerous opponents at a masked ball in the countryside.

Masked Danger….

Lady Alkmene Callender has always loved grand parties, but when she receives an invitation to a masked ball thrown by Franklin Hargrove – oil magnate, aviation enthusiast and father of her best friend, Denise – she’s never seen such luxury. The estate is lit up with Chinese lanterns in the gardens, boats operated by footmen float across the pond and the guest list features the distinguished, rich and powerful!

But below the glamour, evil is lurking. When a dead body is discovered, it forces Lady Alkmene to throw off her mask and attempt to find the true killer before Denise’s family are accused. If only her partner, Jake Dubois, weren’t hiding something from her…

This case might just be more dangerous than either of them could have imagined.

Fatal Masquerade is to be released on 4th October and can be pre-ordered now at Amazon.

Fellow blogger Carol Cork from Rakes and Rascals has challenged me to do this Book Tag post.

RULES:

You must be honest.You must answer all the questions.You must tag at least 4 people.

1. What book has been on your shelf the longest?

That’s a tough one as I have so many books gathering dust on my bookshelf, but I think one of the longest resident’s has got to be PS. I Love You by Celia Ahern. I got it about the same time the film came out, I watched the film but as yet I haven’t even opened the book.

2. What is your current read, your last read, and the book you’ll read next?

Current:The Madam of Blackstairs by Catherine Curzon.

Last:An Unexpected Bride by Lara Temple.

Next: Hard Hearted Highlander by Julia London.

3. What book did everyone like, but you hated?

Oh that is easy! Fifty Shades of Grey, I never even finished it.

4. What book do you keep telling yourself you’ll read, but you probably won’t?

I’m not actually sure! The first one that springs to mind is The Book Thief, again I have seen the film.

5. What book are you saving for retirement?

I don’t tend to think that far ahead, I usually just go with the flow.

6. Last page: read it first, or wait ’til the end?

Definitely wait! You miss out on so much If you just jump ahead.

7. Acknowledgement: waste of paper and ink, or interesting aside?

I think acknowledgements are really interesting, you get a sense of the authors thoughts at that time of their life.

8. Which book character would you switch places with?

Oh that is such a hard question! I’m not sure I would like to permanently switch places with a character I’m too much of a home girl. If I could do it for a day, I wouldn’t mind switching with Eden Farraday from His Wicked Kiss by Gaelen Foley. I would love to walk in her shoes, she is smart, adventurous, so much more courageous than your average heroine, who has also caught the eye of my favourite Knight brother, Jack.

9. Do you have a book that reminds you of something specific in your life? (Place, time, person?)

None specific, every book I read sort of cements itself into my life in someway.

10. Name a book that you acquired in an interesting way.

I rescued a box full of mixed books from a skip once, my library was closing and they were dumping all the old and damaged books, so I saved them. Does that count?

11. Have you ever given a book away for a special reason to a special person?

Yes! To my dad, it was for a big birthday for him so I gave him a box set of Mario Puzo books.

12. Which book has been with you most places?

My notebook, I’m always jotting down bits and bobs.

13. Any “required reading” you hated in high school that wasn’t so bad two years later?

I didn’t go to highschool, so never had to do “required reading”.

14. Used or brand new?

Both.

15. Have you ever read a Dan Brown book?

Yes! I have read them all.

16. Have you ever seen a movie you liked more than the book?

Yes, The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks, great book but the film is so incredible.

17. Have you ever read a book that’s made you hungry, cookbooks included?

I don’t usually get effected in that way from a book.

18. Who is the person whose book advice you’ll always take?

There is quite a few fellow reviewers/bloggers that I respect hugely, especially Rose Blue and Carol Cork, who are both incredibly honest and wise ladies.

19. Is there a book out of your comfort zone (e.g., outside your usual reading genre) that you ended up loving?

I think the book that spring be to mind is The Night Circus, I don’t usually go for magical themed books with timeslips so when I had this given to me I wasn’t sure. But it is hugely enjoyable, it keeps you gripped.

Today I am so pleased to have Harlequin and Mills and Boon author Elisabeth Hobbes chatting with me, so take a seat and let’s get to know a bit more about Elisabeth.

You can find me hanging around The Unlaced Bookclub on Facebook along with other Harlequin Historical authors. I grew up in York where I spent most of my teenage years wandering around the city looking for a handsome Roman or Viking to sweep me off my feet. Sadly it never happened but I developed a love of the past and went on to read History and Art History at university before venturing into the world of teaching. I live in Cheshire with my husband, two young children and two cats with ridiculous names because the car broke down here in 1999 and I never left.I love historical fiction and have a fondness for dark haired, bearded heroes. When I’m not writing, I spend a lot of my spare time reading and have become something of a pro at cooking one-handed while holding a book! I’m fond of ginger mojitos and Thai hot and sour soup, though not at the same time.

Reading Chick: Hi Elisabeth, Welcome to Chicks, Rogues and Scandals! Thank you for taking the time to chat with me today. Firstly what five words would you use to describe yourself?

Elisabeth :Hi, it’s lovely to be here. Only five words. Hmm….Mum, teacher, frazzled (owing mainly to the first two), creative, geeky.

Reading Chick : If you could live in any era and place, When and where would it be? And Why?

Elisabeth :Not the Middle Ages, despite writing about the period and being fascinated by it I wouldn’t want to pay it more than a quick visit! I couldn’t cope with the lack of plumbing and hygiene.

The Roaring Twenties and thirties in New York looked like an amazing time to be alive. The clothes, cocktails and music are all wonderful. I’d go hang around the Algonquin and try make friends with Dorothy Parker or pretend I was in a Jeeves and Wooster story.

Reading Chick : Ooh! I like it, Who was your childhood hero?

Elisabeth :Han Solo. He was so cool and I was a real tomboy so spent playtimes running around pretending to be on the Death Star. I first saw Star Wars when I was little, I don’t think I quite understood what I liked about him. Of course when I got a little older… Yum! That’s probably where I developed my love of rogues and heroes with slightly blurred moral codes and a dangerous twinkle. You never quite trusted he would do the right thing.

Reading Chick : Totally agree with about wayward rogues. What is your favourite time of the year?

Elisabeth :I love to be warm so summer (though I’m fond of winter because I love to ski). Teaching means I’m lucky enough to get a few weeks holiday travelling round France or Spain with my family and I love the light nights where I can sit outside with only a couple of layers on rather than bundled up to the eyebrows.

Reading Chick : Out of all your work, who is your favourite character and why?

Elisabeth : Oooh, difficult, I love all my children! Generally I’m fondest of whoever I have just written so in this case it’s Roger Danby, the roguish brother from The Blacksmith’s Wife who has now got his own story. If I have to choose a previous one I have a bit of a soft spot for Will, the hero of A Wager for the Widow. He’s flirty and cocky (there’s that Han Solo influence) and like me he prefers his oysters cooked to raw.

Reading Chick : Where does your inspiration for your books come from?

Elisabeth : Places play a huge part in my ideas. The Blacksmith’s Wife is set in York where I grew up and on the nearby moors that I love to visit, because I wanted to take a city girl and put her in the middle of nowhere. I fell in love with St Michael’s Mount in Cornwall and thought it was such a beautiful, isolated place for a character to withdraw from the world so I gave it to Eleanor in A Wager for the Widow. The Saxon Outlaw’s Revenge sprang from walking around the Cheshire countryside on a damp, misty day and imagining the execution of a group of unsuccessful rebels and needing to find out who they were. One day I’m going to set a story in Briancon, the lovely Medieval town I stay in when I go skiing.

Reading Chick : What a great answer, What three tips would you pass on to an aspiring author?

Elisabeth : Keep notebooks or paper everywhere because you never know when the perfect sentence or line of dialogue might pop into your head and there’s nothing worse than only half remembering it (deciphering my 3am pitch black scribbles is always fun).

Write something every day, even if it is only one sentence because they do build up and you can’t edit nothing.

Join some sort of writing group, whether online or in real life and be prepared to take criticism. Some people are brutal but mostly I’ve found other writers to be a supportive group are really happy to offer suggestions and advice.

Reading Chick : If you were hosting a dinner party what three people would you invite? (They can be real/fictional, from any era)

Elisabeth :There would have to be other authors so I could pick their brains. Terry Pratchett and Jane Austen because they’re two of my all time favourites and I suspect they’d both enjoy talking about how they deal with class and convention. The third would be Tom Hiddleston so I could apologise for the cover of The Saxon Outlaw’s Revenge looking nothing like him (not that I don’t like the model I got)!

Reading Chick : Thank you, Elisabeth for taking the time out of your busy schedule to chat with me today, I have just one more cheeky question, just for fun . . . What is your all-time favourite naughty but nice food?

Elisabeth :My naughty treat is crisps. I’m a savoury rather than sweet girl (I’m sure many would agree) and I could eat my way through bag after bag if I wasn’t disciplined, especially if I had a glass of wine to hand.

It’s been a pleasure. Thank you for having me.

Thank you for chatting with me, it’s been a pleasure having you visit.

If you want to know more about Elisabeth and her work, then check out the links below.

During both World Wars, women had to take over what was then classed as “Men’s Work”, even today certain parts of the work place is designated to men because the work is “far too dangerous, far too hard and far too dirty” to let women do it, and even when we do go into those areas of work, women are more often frowned upon, or not welcomed. As a woman who has been in various area’s of work, I have done all sort’s but yet at those times when I have worked in a primarily male environment I have been made to feel very out-of-place, or being the only woman on site, I have either been leered at or treated with kids gloves. After all these years of proving that we can do anything a man can do we, women are still delegated to looking pretty and making tea. This is why International Women’s Day is so important, we have celebrate just how brilliant we, women are and we have to remember all those amazing women before us that did just what men thought they couldn’t.

Today I am talking about the amazing women, who – during both wars – went into the mans world and they did a damn good job. My main focus today is about the those incredible women who went into what was by far one of the hardest and dangerous industries; The steelworks! Now my dad was a steel worker and I have seen what it did to him, the scars from where he was injured, the damaged hearing and other seen and unseen scar’s that all steelworkers carry with them. For me, this particular ‘A Little history ‘ post is very personal and one that I have been wanting to post for a long time.

During WW2, with all our men gone to fight the world-famous Sheffield Steelworks had to keep going, in fact it was critical for the war effort that it keep open, due to the fact that the Steelworks were making the very ammunition that our soldiers needed. But all the men were gone, who would man the Steelworks? There was only one for it. Women!

Sheffield women donned their overalls and walked in to that factory with their heads held high and they did the job. Like in every other Steelworks around the country, the women took over and they ruled. Usually when we think of heroes from WW2 we think of the Land Army Girls, The Wrens and the front line Nurse’s, but this band of extraordinary women slaved away, day in and day out in Sheffield’s Steelwork, it was highly dangerous work but highly important work, without them who knows what would have happened – the war could have ended very differently.

The work they were doing was so far removed from what they would have been used to, most were pulled from their own jobs in Retail and Hospitality while the majority of the women were housewives. It is said that they got very little training, if any at all and most this would have been their first ever taste of work. Can you imagine how that would have been? Being forced from what you know into that hot, dangerous and intimidating factory, where one false move could very well end your death, if your lucky you get basic training. In constant fear of the burners over heating and there being an explosion, of getting burnt daily. Then there are the long-term injuries such as back problems, hearing loss, eye sight problems. Shoulders, knees and hand problems where they would have been burnt and strained and in some cases psychological problems after experiencing accidents.

The work was hard, typical daily tasks would have included picking up the steel at one end while a colleague had held of the other end, they would then have to put the steel into the heat and hammer it. Another daily task was climbing 20ft ladders to use forklifts, so it was no good complaining about being scarred of heights, you just had to get on with it, and grin and bear it. The days long with only perhaps Sunday free, it was hard manual labour, if all that was bad enough then there was the ‘Canary Girls’ who worked with the chemicals inside the ammunition. Their skin would turn yellow because of being in constant exposure of chemicals, they would get ill and they were in constant fear that the chemicals they were handling daily could explode.

What is incredible though is that once the war was over and the men returned, they walked straight into the Steelworks, told the woman to go back to their own lives without so much as a Thanks or Well done. These women had gone above and beyond to keep the factory running and to keep those very men in ammunition and that was the thanks that they got. Go back home!

The men may not have given these incredible women the respect and recognition that they deserved but we do. In Sheffield City Centre there is the proud and iconic Steel Statue, that is quite fitting called; The Women of Steel, which is in tribute to those inspirational women who did so much for us.

Below is just a few of the many ways that women were taking on so-called men’s work during WW2.
In early 1941, the Government Minister for Labour declared that ‘One million wives were wanted for war work” December 1941 the National Service Act was passed in Parliament, which included that all unmarried women aged 20 -30 were to be conscripted for war work, (The age was extended later to 19 -43). They had to either join the Armed Forces, work in a factory or work the land with the Woman’s Land Army

ATS : The Auxiliary Territorial Service.
The ATS was a branch of the British Army during WW2, all women between 17 and 43 could join, although they were barred from serving in battle. They took on the roles such as cooks, storekeepers, orderlies, drivers and postal workers. Later in the war as there was becoming a shortage in men, the women in the ATS became radar operators and anti-aircraft gun crew members.

WRNS : The Women’s Royal Navy Service.
At the beginning of the war, the women’s branch of the Royal Navy was seen as a way of freeing men who were in non-combatant roles, such as cooking and driving to fight. “Join the Wrens’ today and free a man to join the fleet.” Which is what a recruitment poster urged women to do. The Wrens’ went on to do very important and varied work such as code-breaking at Bletchley Park and operating radar equipment.

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